Why I Stopped Keeping Arowana Fish...

The lids are NOT secure. If you can easily lift them with yoyr hands, they can easily smack themselves on them and burst out of your tank. Make sure the lids are either heavy and hard to move, or they have a lock system that prevents them from being opened I know this because I lost 1 silver arowana and I managed to actually see the second one burst through the lid and land on the floor because it saw a butterfly flying above the tank. You'd be surprised at how powerful their jumps are which is both amazing but also frustrating

Excellent video. This is as clear a warning on the challenges of keeping an arowana as I've seen on the internet. You've probably saved many others from a great deal of heartache. Thank you,

Put a brick on top. They are not going through the 3 inch space they are popping lid open when they jump Powerful fish that could of been saved by a brick. Better luck next tine.

This problem can be easily solved with placing a mesh net over any openings, my Jardini loves to jump when he see's bubbles at the top of the tank; they are easily spooked as well, heavy walking or quick movement.

Reminds me of my uncle's arowana that met its end by jumping out. There was a cover to the tank but it broke through the cover. Must have seen a lizard on the ceiling that caused it to jump since there are a lot of house geckos from where I am. The death of that arowana was unfortunately what ended his interest in fishkeeping.

Silver arowanas are good jumpers as compared to other Arowanas. Arowanas would jump if they are in shock or if they sense a bug at the top of the tank. I have an arowana as well. It jumps at times. However, I was advised to fully cover the top of the tank and put a heavy object eg: a rock or stone above the lid. My personal opinion is that you should continue keeping Arowanas. They are graceful and it’s very relaxing to watch them swimming. 😅

My silver is about 30 inch and over the years and has survived 8 trips to the floor. I built straps out of hanger like metal bands that strap all the lids to the tank front and back. Hasnt been out in quite a few years since. The size of the tank doesn't matter if there's not a secure lid and no exit points.

Yikes , I’ve heard they can jump with enough strength to actually make the lids go up and they land outside while the lid lands back where it was an you would never know that they pushed the lid up . I’m just bringing that up seeing that your one arowana was too wide to squeeze through that opening . I’m not a big fish person but thought I would share .

Lesson well learned. I will definitely think twice now about getting an Arowana. Great video...Thanks for sharing 💪🏼

Looks like he pushed the canopy up and went through directly up. Not through the smaller openings.

Back in the early 1970's my cousin had a large silver arowana. He was big and beautiful and my cousins favorite fish. My cousin got him when the arowana was very small. My cousin knew that the arowana was a jumper and would find the smallest opening to jump out of. So the tank had a solid covering with only the necessary openings for filters and heater etc. But those openings also had stuffing around the small openings. So my cousin felt that his arowana was safe but he came home one day and the arowana was laying in the floor. The fish had hit the top closure so hard that it moved it over a few inches and the fish jumped out. So you can never be careful enough when it comes to arowana fish. My cousin was devastated, he loved that fish. Years later he still had the fish frozen in his freezer.

Honestly, this has to be the best aquarium channel on YouTube - professionally edited, amazing multifaceted stock and setups, and a great, down-to-earth perspective from a seasoned and passionate hobbyist. I just didn't realize you were so young - being fresh out of highschool in 2013! Makes it all the more impressive - and those lost Arowanas weren't your fault; that's some escape-from-Alcatraz shit they're pulling.

Some fish just don't belong in tanks. These are 100% one of them. To live their best lives, they would need to be in something MUCH bigger with the stimulation that they'll get in the wild. I doubt that anything but maybe a zoo could provide that. I always feel sorry seeing them in tanks.

I have seen arowana freak out in small tanks and its sad. They really need tanks over 1,000g long term but sure they will survive in less depending on tankmates.

For future reference: you must put heavy weights on the lids of the tank. Arowana can easily jump out of a tank even with lids. Weights are vital! I would put a decent weight on each corner of the lid and in the middle. Besides not having weights, your 2nd Arowana setup was perfect! Your other fish look amazing and massive respect for being able to say Arowana aren't right for you at this point. Being able to admit that shows that you aren't in it for ego but genuinely for the love of fish. Subbed!

I'll tell you what I think of this video. Your tanks are amazing and your fish are beautiful and healthy. But in relation to the topic, I think you finally worked out what it would take to stop your arowana from jumping out of your tank, and then gave up. Those flimsy acrylic lids wouldn't help any, either. If you want to keep them still and want them to be able to jump as they do in the wild, why don't you build a surround that sits on top of the tank. You could make it 3 or 4 feet higher than the top of your tank, and then allow a bigger gap so that your fish will land back through the hole. You could stain the surround the same colour as your tank stand so that it looks like it's supposed to be part of the setup. If you secured an acrylic lid at the top with screws, he won't be able to push past it. You could make a door that opens from the top and hinges at the bottom so that you can get access to feed the fish. Have it go all the way across. Cut out slots for any hoses or cords. Finally, make it out of plywood so that if you need to remove it for maintenance, it won't be too heavy. Heck, if you did this, you probably wouldn't need any cover at the top of the tank, the one screwed into the top of the surround would be enough, and you would still prevent too much evaporation. I know it's a bit of work just to keep an arowana happy, but if I could afford to keep them and wanted them to be able to jump as they do in the wild, I'd definitely consider making something like this, just so that I could enjoy having these fish.

My jardini jump last month It was weird because I was asleep and idk but something made me get up when I found him his skin was already dried up and coved with debri off the floor. I reacted quickly grab and held in inside the tank close to power head that i attached a airpump to blast him with air bubbles I'm lucky his still with me. I learned my lesson I quickly replaced my lid with a steal one.

I really enjoyed the style of this video with the moments where the screen goes black and you post the words you are saying in rapid style. I don’t know the name of the style but it was cool and different. On the fish keeping side, I’ve never kept arrowana but I’ve felt this same frustration with the killifish I’ve been dabbling in for the last 2 years. I keep the lid 100% secure but sometimes they can squeeze through just that tiny little gap where the airline just lifts the lid a fraction of an inch. I gave up on Golden wonder killis altogether because I couldn’t keep them in the aquarium

my arowana used to jump more when he was younger. Only during feeding times. I've always had a secure lid, no issues there. One time he was so excited to eat as soon as I opened the lid he jumped straight up in front of me so I caught him with my hands and put him right back in the tank. He doesn't jump as often now. I think he learned the risks involved after that.

That 21" x 2" fish was definitely big enough to jump through any one of those lightweight UNSECURED acrylic hoods.🙄